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India and Bangladesh meeting in the second quarter-final Cricket World Cup at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Thursday.

Bangladesh are surprise quarter-finalists and are underdogs to add another chapter to their tournament with India expected to progress to the semis.

The game gets underway at the MCG at 2.30pm AEDT and will be broadcast live on Fox Sports in Australia. Coverage will also be available online.

Preview

Not many would have expected this match-up when the draw was announced some months ago. More than that, not too many would have expected India to top their group and for Bangladesh to qualify for the quarter-finals at the start of the competition.

On paper, India are the stronger of the two sides and Bangladesh's senior player and all-rounder Shakib al Hasan was candid enough to say that in his press conference on Tuesday. However, on a given day, the mighty have fallen by the wayside on occasions and that's what Bangladesh will be hoping for as well.

Shakib said: "Yes, on paper, India is a better team than Bangladesh. No one has any doubt about it. On the day it's a one-off game. If we have a good day and they have a bad day, you never know."

India's run-up to the quarter-final has been exceptional in that they have won six games in a row, which is the first time they have gone into the knock-outs unbeaten. While they were tested while batting second against West Indies and Zimbabwe, their facile wins over South Africa and Pakistan will hold them in a very good stead here.

Bangladesh required to beat England in their final match to make it through at their opponents' expense. What was impressive about that win was the manner in which the Bangladesh speedsters set it up, not something that happens regularly for them.

India have continued to go into the games with the same XI. In fact the only change they have made in the entire tournament was in the game against UAE when Mohammad Shami had injured himself. Expect that to continue for this one too.

Speaking of Shami, he has been a standout bowler in the tournament for India and that comes after he was going through a horrendous patch of form. He could well be the player to watch out.

Bangladesh will be tempted to play an extra spinner given how the pitch at the MCG begins to behave difficult in the second half. But for a side to have won a game against England the way they did, it could almost be unfair to chop and change the playing XI. Could see both teams come in unchanged for this one.

Interestingly, both teams have played a game apiece at the MCG. India batted first in their game against South Africa and slammed 307 from their 50 overs, before winning by 130 runs. Bangladesh were at the receiving end of a sizzling 160 by T Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara's century and they managed just 240 in reply to Sri Lanka's 332/1.

Given that it becomes difficult to bat on in the second session, it does look like the team winning the toss could look to bat first here. India have been a tad shaky chasing targets in the tournament but to their credit, they have done well enough.

They have met each other only two times before this with both having won a match apiece. Bangladesh's punishing win over India in the 2007 World Cup knocked them out of the competition before they avenged it with a convincing victory in the opening game of the 2011 World Cup.